Disability Arts Heritage Project Seeks North West Memories

Artist Calls for North West Memories of Disability Arts Movement

An artist is urging people across the North West to share their memories of the Disability Arts movement for a new national heritage project. The initiative, named Cripping Culture, aims to preserve the history of disabled creativity before these stories are lost to time. It will create an accessible digital archive, an interactive timeline, and a podcast series using public contributions.

Project Backed by Tony Heaton and National Lottery Funding

Southport sculptor Tony Heaton is supporting the scheme, which has received nearly £250,000 from The National Lottery Heritage Fund. The three-year project is being run by Disability Arts Online, a disabled-led charitable arts group.

Tony Heaton, project supporter, said: "It is important that people share their memories of disability arts history to Cripping Culture because, if we don’t tell our own stories, someone else (the-non-disabled) will write our histories... Disabled people need to control our history and the first-person and lived experience voice is the only authentic voice we should have in articulating our struggle."

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Who Can Contribute and What to Share

Organisers want to hear from anyone who attended an exhibition, met an artist, or worked with a local disability group. Contributions are welcome from audience members, musicians, performers, and activists from all backgrounds. Submissions can be sent in as text, photographs, video, or audio clips. People can share multiple memories in either English or British Sign Language, and extra access support is available for anyone who needs help to apply.

Colin Hambrook Encourages Public Participation

Colin Hambrook, Heritage Project Director, said: "It doesn’t matter who you are, if you have a story to tell that involves disability arts in the UK, then we want to hear from you. Everyone who shares a memory will play an important part in the Cripping Culture project, saving our heritage for future generations. It is important for the legacy of the Disability Arts movement that we capture stories of events from the North West that may have not been previously recorded. We want to celebrate the vast breadth of disability arts activity that has occurred across time. We are grateful to Tony for helping us share this call out far and wide and would love other people to get involved too."